Lifestyle

For the Love of Wood – Artisans Around the Hill Country

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Tony Maples Photography

 

Woodworking — it’s not a hobby, it’s an addiction. The Texas Hill Country is studded with artisans who work with wood and share a passion for its natural beauty and timeless appeal. So, consider this a primer for your irresistible urge to take a part of the Hill Country home with you.

Harold Dykes

Photo: www.artisansatrockyhill.net

Harold Dykes, of Boerne, has been working with wood for over 45 years, which began with his interest in building guitars. Nowadays, his passion is hand-turning beautiful segmented vases and bowls using different species and colors of wood. He loves the challenge of creating various shapes, and is constantly working on new designs and patterns. To achieve certain patterns and color schemes, he occasionally mixes wood with man-made materials. His finely-turned vessels may be seen at Artisans – A Texas Gallery in Fredericksburg.

Marc Fields

Photo: Marc Fields

Marc Fields, wood artisan and owner of Solid Wood Concepts, creates beautiful hand-made furniture, from unique accent tables to detailed kitchen tables. In his workshop outside New Braunfels, he combines a love of wood with a variety of species to produce a respected work of art. Inspired by his grandfather, Marc’s goal is to translate the wood’s natural beauty and tactile quality into each piece. He believes the fine-grained coloring of the veins inside the wood tells its life story. No two pieces will ever be the same and each is engraved using his trademark signature; a circle with a dash in the middle.

Scott Taylor

Photo: www.taylored4tx.com

Scott Taylor, of Taylored for Texas, finds beauty in the most unexpected reclaimed wood, utilizing old and forgotten doors, as well as redeemed wood from abandoned barns. His artistic ability and attention to detail shine through each and every piece that he builds. Scott’s designs lends itself to many genres and tastes, whether for your home, lake-house or cabin in the woods. Each article is created by hand and has a history unique to itself.

Robert Waring

Photo: www.hillcountrybackwoods.com

Hill Country Backwoods creates unique and one-of-a-kind pieces using rustic woods – cedar, mesquite, pecan, pine, oak, barn, and reclaimed wood – to create remarkable showpieces. From raw planks to the refined creation, each piece is handcrafted at Vinewood Ranch outside Wimberley and harvested wood directly from the property is used in many projects. They take rustic to a whole new level – ‘Refined Rustic’. Their passion for rustic does not stop there, they raise and breed registered Texas Longhorns at the Ranch.

wildflowers

Photo: www.imagesfromtexas.com

What makes the Hill Country so special? Some say the green rolling hills, scenic views of pocket canyons, spring-fed rivers that flow past limestone bluffs, sun-drenched spring wildflowers, talented artists of all genres, roadhouse diners and vintage dance halls, from aspiring musicians to Willie and Waylon….“Maybe it’s time we got back to the basics”. Whatever it is, get out and enjoy all the artistry the Texas Hill Country has to offer.